Recalled Hope Chest Causes Deaths of 2 Mass. Children

A truly unfortunate story has unfolded out of Franklin, Massachusetts. Two children, Lexi and Sean Munroe, passed away after an accident at home Sunday evening (01/12/2014). Family members found the children together inside a hope chest. Police responded to the home and the children were taken to area hospitals, but they did not survive.

It turns out that the hope chest, manufactured by the Lane Furniture Company in 1939, had been recalled “because children could get trapped inside and asphyxiated.” All of the company’s hope chests manufactured from 1912-1986 had been recalled due to this. Apparently, the chest had a lid that could be opened only from the outside.

So why did the family still have the piece of furniture? The Munroe family said they had bought the chest second-hand about a decade ago. This demonstrates the difficulty of recalling an older product. I urge you all to use this story as a motivator. Other companies out there made similar chests, and if you have children, I hope you use this as an opportunity to look at your furniture with new eyes.